09 WTCC Rds 7 & 8 Pau - France

• 11.05.2009
• Press Release

 

Andy Priaulx (BMW Team UK):
“I like the atmosphere in Pau. It’s a mini Monaco and a very good circuit for the spectators. Last year the two races there went fantastically well for us. It could be a bit more challenging this season. The car must cope well with the high kerbs and offer good traction. A strong grid position is paramount.”

Jörg Müller (BMW Team Germany):
“Since I’ve been racing in Pau in the WTCC, I’ve not had any luck at this circuit. When I appeared there in the Formula 3000 series, I was on the top step of the podium. I shall have this positive memory in the back of my mind, as I finally aim to pick up my first points in Pau.”

Augusto Farfus (BMW Team Germany):
“Pau is a very special place for me. I suffered one of the worst crashes of my career there in 2007, when I rolled the car in qualifying. Despite that I came back to win the second race. Last year I also managed to finish up on the top of the podium. That just goes to show how at home I feel in Pau.”

Alessandro Zanardi (BMW Team Italy-Spain):
“In 2007 I narrowly missed out on points in Pau by finishing ninth. To date this remains my most successful race on this street circuit. Following the difficult weekend in Morocco, I'm fired up to finally add another good result to my tally. I like the track, although overtaking manoeuvres are a true rarity there.”

Sergio Hernández (BMW Team Italy-Spain):
“The Pau circuit should suit us much better than the track in Morocco, which made it difficult for us with its long straights and tight chicanes. A glance at the past years' results in France proves that we have always been competitive there. I will try hard to give my team reason to celebrate again.”

History and Background:
Augusto Farfus dominated proceedings in the first of last year’s races at the “Circuit de Pau Ville” last year. Having secured pole position in qualifying, he then finished a record 17.851 seconds ahead of SEAT driver Yvan Muller (FR) in second. Farfus also set the fastest lap to complete the “hat-trick” at the narrow street circuit. In the second race of the day, Andy Priaulx coped best with a wet track to clinch a valuable victory.

Farfus made the headlines in 2007 in Pau, having rolled his car spectacularly during qualifying. After the initial concern for the driver, the Schnitzer Motorsport team were forced to put in some extra shifts. As a result, the celebrations were even greater when Farfus crossed the line first to seal victory ahead of Priaulx.

The two World Touring Car Championship races in Pau are the only FIA World Championship races to be held on French soil this season.

Motor racing venues as steeped in history as the “Circuit de Pau Ville” are rare. The inaugural race on the narrow streets was held back in 1901. In 1930 Pau was the venue for the very first “Grand Prix” in the history of the sport. Up to this point in time the label “GP” was used only for horse races. Since then, the “Grand Prix de Pau” has become an institution on the motorsport scene in France. In 2009 it will be held for the 69th time, while the World Touring Car Championship will be the main event for the third time.

From 1950 to 1963, Pau was also the venue for ten Formula One races. However, these races did not count as World Championship rounds. Still, the record book for the events looks like a “Who’s Who” of motor racing in those days: among the winners on the track, that today is 2.760 kilometres long, were the likes of Juan Manuel Fangio, Alberto Ascari, Jack Brabham and Jim Clark.

Up to 1984 Pau was a regular venue for the European Formula 2 Championship that was replaced by Formula 3000 in 1985. Because of this, mainly up-and-coming young racing drivers took up the challenge represented by the demanding street circuit. Jörg Müller succeeded in shining there at the wheel of a Formula 3000 single-seater. In 1996 Pau was the venue for the second round of the season, and when the 72-lap race was over, Kenny Bräck, who went on to win the Indianapolis 500, was the only driver who hadn’t been lapped by the German. At the end of the day, Müller crossed the finish line with a 5.275-second lead over the Swede – and at the end of the season won the championship.

Pau has some 80,000 inhabitants and is – after Bordeaux – the second biggest city in the Aquitaine region. Due to its closeness to the Pyrenees, it has been a regular venue for legs of the “Tour de France”. More than 60 times the most famous cycle race in the world has crossed the city.

The two WTCC races are both run over 19 laps. This is a total distance of 52.44 kilometres. The first race begins on Sunday at 13:05hrs local time (12:05hrs BST), with race two starting at 15:20hrs (14:20hrs BST).

• 17.05.2009
• Press Release

 

In the Drivers’ Championship, Farfus now has 39 points to his name and successfully reduced the gap to the leader, Yvan Muller (FR), to six points. In the manufacturers’ classification, BMW increased its points tally to 91, 16 points behind leaders SEAT.

Before the start of race one, the actual starting grid remained uncertain for a long while. At the post qualifying technical inspection of the data from all the cars, several of them, including the BMW 320si WTCC’s of Andy Priaulx and Sergio Hernández, were found to exceed the maximum permitted revs. This over revving of the 8,500rpm mark only occurred when the drivers were down shifting. In what was considered a surprising decision, the FIA Stewards of the Meeting judged these over revs to be in breach of the regulations. The BMW national teams decided not to appeal this decision. However, they believe it is not in the spirit of the sport, especially as over revving during down shifting has been accepted in all motorsport championships around the world for many years.

The cars concerned had their times disallowed from the second part of qualifying. Therefore Priaulx started from fifth instead of pole position for race one, Farfus moved up to the front. At the start he successfully defended his lead. On lap 2, however, Farfus’ car lost momentum in turn 3 after sliding on some oil. This gave Huff, who had passed Müller for second at the start, the chance to grab the lead. Up to the chequered flag, Farfus put the leader under pressure, but didn’t manage to pass him on this tight street circuit. Müller kept third until the very end, thus making it the first time this year that both BMW Team Germany drivers have been on the podium.

Priaulx, however, launched two successful attacks. On lap 3 he regained fifth place, which he had lost at the start. Nine laps later, the triple world champion also overtook Menu, finally crossing the line in fourth. Hernández followed in fifth, thanks to several inspired overtaking manoeuvres that helped him to improve from his tenth grid position. Zanardi was also eyeing a top eight finish. But on lap 5 he was forced to retire after making a mistake and hitting the wall.

The start of the second race was a chaotic affair. In the first corner, Priaulx and Müller collided. The latter had to pit with a broken front suspension. Priaulx was able to continue in fifth. Farfus benefited from this incident and improved from seventh to fourth. Zanardi performed the best start of the BMW squad, gaining no less than nine places from 20th. Hernández was on his way up and ran in fourth, when a collision with Félix Porteiro (ES) destroyed his hopes for a podium finish.

Following all these incidents the safety-car was deployed, resulting in a dangerous situation. The race leader, BMW privateer driver Franz Engstler (DE), was unable to avoid the safety-car when it drove out of the pits and straight onto the racing line in front of him. All those involved walked away from this accident without a scratch, but Engstler’s race was over. The race was suspended and re-started after a lengthy break. Farfus and Priaulx both got past Porteiro on lap 6 and put some pressure on the Chevrolet drivers ahead of them. Farfus never managed to take the lead from Menu, nor could Priaulx pass Huff for third. By finishing second and fourth, the pairing reproduced their race one results. Zanardi’s drive up the field came to an end in fifth, after he had overtaken another six cars.

Augusto Farfus (BMW Team Germany):
“In the first race I got on some oil in turn 3, which made me lose momentum. So Robert Huff was able to pass me. Afterwards I waited for him to make a mistake. But that never came. It was exactly the same in race two, this time behind Alain Menu. I’m happy for the team. Again we leave Pau with a lot of points in the bag.”

Jörg Müller (BMW Team Germany):
“It was great to be back on the podium! At this circuit it’s just impossible to overtake, unless the driver in front of you makes a mistake. Augusto didn’t do me this favour in race one. It’s a pity I didn’t have the chance to add some points to my tally following the early accident in race two.”

Andy Priaulx (BMW Team UK):
“I am not sure how to describe my weekend. Ten points is a good haul when you consider the last race in Marrakech. However, it could have been so much better if I had not lost my pole. Although the reason for the race being stopped was not good at all, I was relieved as I would have had to pit with my puncture.”

Sergio Hernández (BMW Team Italy-Spain):
“The first race went just great. I managed to gain many positions and clocked the fastest race lap for the first time in my career. Who knows where I could have finished in race two? But then Félix Porteiro put an end to my hopes. That’s really disappointing, as we were very competitive here.”

Alessandro Zanardi (BMW Team Italy-Spain):
“After qualifying I was very confident about scoring a good result here. The car underneath me was just really, really good. But then I ruined my first race with a mistake. The team worked perfectly to repair the car, so I could push hard again in race two. It was good fun to overtake so many competitors on such a track, where overtaking normally is impossible.”